Portable blower

ABSTRACT

A portable blower unit ( 1 ) includes a housing ( 2 ). A device for guiding the blower unit ( 1 ) over the ground ( 6 ) can be fixed to the housing ( 2 ) in order to facilitate a multi-use of the blower unit ( 1 ).

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority of German patent application no. 103 59749.2, filed Dec. 19, 2003, the entire content of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A known portable blower includes a handle with which the blower can beguided manually. Blowers are also known which can be carried on the backof an operator. Blowers of this kind can be used in many ways becausethe operator is not dependent upon easily accessible ground such aspathways or the like as is the case in moveable blowers. However, theoperator must always carry the blower. This leads to rapid fatigue ofthe operator.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the invention to provide a portable blower of thekind referred to above which can be used in many ways and which reducesfatigue of the operator.

The portable blower arrangement of the invention includes: a blower unitincluding a housing; a device for guiding the blower unit on the ground;and, means for attaching the device to the housing.

A device for guiding the blower unit over the ground can be fixed to thehousing of the blower unit. In this way, the blower unit can beconverted into a ground-guided blower unit in a simple manner. When usedas a ground-guided blower unit, the operator need not carry the weightof the apparatus whereby the load on the operator is considerablyreduced. In this way, fatigue-free utilization of the blower unit ispossible. In inaccessible terrain, the device can be separated from theblower unit and the blower unit can be used as a portable blower unit.In this way, the blower unit can be used in many ways.

During operation, the blower unit blows out air through a discharge pipewhich is configured as a short stub. The blower arrangement has a blowertube which can be releasably attached to the discharge pipe. In order touse the blower unit as a back-carried blower unit, a blower tube isneeded which conducts the air flow, which is generated by the blowerunit, around the body of the operator toward the front so that theoperator can direct the air flow to the location of utilization. Withthe blower tube, considerable flow losses, however, result. To reducethese flow losses when utilizing the blower unit as a ground-guidedblower unit, the blower tube is attached to the discharge pipe so as tobe releasable so that the blower unit, when utilized as a ground-guidedblower unit, can be utilized without the blower tube. With theconfiguration of the discharge pipe as a short stub, considerableincreases in performance are obtained when utilizing the blower unit asa ground-guided blower arrangement compared to the use of the blowerunit having the blower tube.

Advantageously, the blower unit has an operator-controlled unit with athrottle lever with this operator-controlled unit being releasablyfixable to the blower arrangement. The disposition of theoperator-controlled unit on the arrangement makes possible a simple,ergonomic handling during operation of the blower unit as aground-guided blower arrangement. The operator-controlled unit includesa collar for fastening the operator-controlled unit to the blower tube.In this way, an ergonomic handling is made possible also during use ofthe blower unit as a back-carried blower unit. The collar functions tofix the operator-controlled unit to the blower tube as well as to fixthe operator-controlled unit to the apparatus. The blower unit cantherefore be used as a back-carried blower unit as well as aground-guided blower unit without additional devices being needed forthe conversion. The blower arrangement advantageously includes a deviceconfigured as a moveable rack. The housing includes a back-carryingplate for carrying the blower unit on the back. In this way, the blowerunit can be guided on the ground as well as being carried on the back ofan operator because the blower unit has a back-carrying plate and isreleasably attachable to the device, especially on the moveable rack.

A simple configuration of the blower unit results when the device can befixed to the back support plate. The back support plate has especially ahandle on which the back support plate can be attached to the moveablerack. A handle of this kind is usually provided for back-carried blowerunits so that the blower unit can be held in a simple manner as long asit is not carried on the back. This handle is used in order to fix theblower unit to the moveable rack. In this way, no additional devices ofthe blower arrangement such as attachment means or the like are neededfor the attachment of the blower unit to the moveable rack.

A base section is advantageously formed on the back support plate andthis base section is at an angle relative to the back support plate. Themoveable rack has a support section on which the base section of theback support plate lies. In this way, the weight of the blower unit canbe taken up by the moveable rack in a simple manner. There are noadditional attachment means necessary because the blower unit lies inplace on the support section because of its own weight. At the sametime, a simple removal of the blower unit from the moveable rack as wellas a simple attachment of the blower unit thereto is possible.

The blower arrangement has a handle section for guiding the blower unit.In this way, the operator can comfortably guide the blower unit over theground. A simple configuration of the moveable rack results when themoveable rack is bent from a tube and comprises essentially two L-shapedstruts which are connected to each other at one end of their long legsby the handle section. The moveable rack can be made essentially fromone bent tube section. The tube has low weight and sufficient stability.The moveable rack includes at least one wheel with which the blower unitcan be guided over the ground. The two long legs are connected to eachother via an axle on the opposite-lying ends on which at least onewheel, especially two wheels, is mounted. The axle functionssimultaneously to reinforce the moveable rack. A conventionalback-carried blower unit can be mounted in a simple manner on such amoveable rack and can be converted into a ground-guided blower unit inthis way.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described with reference to the drawingswherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of the blower arrangement of theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the blower tube; and,

FIG. 3 is a rear elevation view of the blower arrangement viewed in thedirection of arrow III in FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

The blower unit 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes a housing 2 in which aninternal combustion engine is mounted. The internal combustion engine isusually a two-stroke engine and drives a blower wheel which generates anair flow through a discharge pipe 4. The discharge pipe 4 is configuredas a short pipe-shaped stub and terminates at a small spacing above theground 6. The housing 2 of the blower unit 1 includes a back-carrierplate 7 which is configured as a separate component and is tightlyconnected to the housing 2. A base section 15 is formed on theback-carrier plate 7 at the end of the plate facing toward the ground 6.The base section 15 extends approximately perpendicularly to theback-carrier plate 7. An operator-controlled unit 8 is provided foroperating the blower arrangement 1 a which includes a moveable rack 3.The operator-controlled unit 8 includes a throttle lever 9 and a switch10. The switch 10 can be a selector switch for adjusting different modesof operation or a latch switch to prevent unintended actuation of thethrottle lever 9. The operator-controlled unit 8 is connected to a fuelmetering device, especially a carburetor, via a Bowden cable 12. Thecarburetor is mounted in the housing 2 and meters the air/fuel mixtureto the engine.

The blower unit 1 is disposed on the moveable rack 3. The moveable rack3 has two wheels 5 with which the blower unit 1 can be guided over theground. In lieu of the two wheels 5, also one wheel or three or morewheels can be provided. Also, other means for guiding the blower unitover the ground can be provided, for example, a support device or thelike which glides over the ground. The moveable rack 3 has a handlesection 13 at which the operator can guide the moveable rack 3. In theregion of the wheels 5, the moveable rack 3 also includes a supportsection 14 on which the base section 15 of the back-carrier plate 7rests. The operator-controlled unit 8 includes a collar 11 with whichthe operator-controlled unit is releasably attached to the moveable rack3.

The operator-controlled unit 8 is in the normal operating position ofthe blower arrangement as shown in FIG. 1 fastened above theback-carrier plate 7 and below the handle section 13 between theback-carrier plate 7 and the handle section 13 on the moveable rack 3.The back-carrier plate 7 and the collar 11 are releasably attached tothe moveable rack 3. To convert the blower arrangement 1 a into a blowerunit 1, which is carried on the back, the collar 11 and the back-carrierplate 7 are separated from the moveable rack 3.

The blower arrangement 1 a includes the blower tube 16 shown in FIG. 2for use when the blower unit 1 is carried on the back. The blower tube16 can be fixedly attached to the discharge pipe 4 with a connectingpiece 17. The blower tube 16 includes a flexible segment 18 in a regionnext to the connecting piece 17. The flexible segment can, for example,be configured as a bellows and connects to a rigid section 29. On therigid section 29, a nozzle 19 is provided at the end facing away fromthe flexible segment 18. The air flow from the blower tube 16 exitsthrough the nozzle 19. The operator-controlled unit 8 can be fixed withthe collar 11 on the rigid section 29 as shown in FIG. 2.

The back-carrier plate 7 is strapped tightly to the back of the operatorwhen the blower unit 1 is used as a back-supported blower unit. Theflexible segment 18 functions to direct the air flow from the dischargepipe 4 around the body of the operator. The operator grasps theoperator-controlled unit 8 with one hand and can, in this way, bring thenozzle 19 to the location of use as well as control the engine of theblower unit.

In FIG. 3, the blower arrangement 1 a is shown with the moveable rack 3in the direction of arrow III of FIG. 1 directed toward the back-carrierplate 7. The moveable rack 3 is built up of a bent tube and has twoL-shaped struts 24. The shorter legs of the struts 24 form the supportsection 14 of the moveable rack 3 shown in FIG. 1. The longer legs 25extend approximately perpendicularly to the support section 14 and areconnected to each other at their ends 26 by a handle section 13. Theends 26 face away from the support section 14. The two struts 24 runparallel to each other. The ends 27 of the struts 24 face away from thehandle section 13 and face toward the support section 14. At these ends27, the two struts 24 are connected to each other via an axle 20 onwhich wheels 5 are mounted at respective outer lying ends. Theback-carrier plate 7 runs parallel to the two long legs 25 of the struts24 and has a handle 28 on its end facing upwardly in the normal workposition. The handle 28 is formed by a handle opening 22 in theback-carrier plate 7. The two long legs 25 are connected to each othervia a transverse strut 21 approximately at the elevation of the handle28. The handle 28 is connected to the transverse strut 21 by anattachment band 23, for example, a VELCRO band. The transverse strut 21is displaced relative to the handle 28 in the direction toward thesupport section 14 so that the attachment band 23 presses the basesection 15 of the back-carrier plate 7 against the support section 14 ofthe moveable rack 3. In this way, the blower unit 1 of the blowerarrangement 1 a is tightly and releasably connected to the moveable rack3 via the attachment band 23. By releasing the attachment band 23 andthe collar 11 from the moveable rack 3, the blower unit 1 can bereleased and utilized as a blower unit which can be carried on the backof an operator. The blower unit 1 is ready in this position afterattachment of the blower tube 16 to the discharge pipe 4.

In lieu of the moveable rack 3, a different apparatus can be providedfor guiding the blower unit 1 over the ground 6. At least one wheel 5can be mounted directly on the housing 2 of the blower unit 1, forexample, by insertion or clip-on of the wheel axle. In lieu of thewheels 5, other means can be provided for guidance over the ground 6.The operator guides the blower unit over the ground with the handlesection. This handle section can be mounted directly on the housing, forexample, it can be inserted or clipped thereto.

It is understood that the foregoing description is that of the preferredembodiments of the invention and that various changes and modificationsmay be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as defined in the appended claims.

1. A portable blower arrangement comprising: a blower unit including ahousing; a device for guiding said blower unit on the ground; and, meansfor attaching said device to said housing.
 2. The portable blowerarrangement of claim 1, wherein said blower unit has a discharge pipethrough which air is blown during operation of said blower unit; and,said discharge pipe is configured as a short stub.
 3. The portableblower arrangement of claim 2, further comprising a blower tube forreleasable attachment to said discharge pipe.
 4. The portable blowerarrangement of claim 3, further comprising an operator-controlled unithaving a throttle lever; and, means for releasably fixing saidoperator-controlled unit on said device.
 5. The portable blowerarrangement of claim 4, wherein said fixing means is a collar forattaching said operator-controlled unit to said blower tube.
 6. Theportable blower arrangement of claim 1, wherein said device is amoveable rack.
 7. The portable blower arrangement of claim 1, whereinsaid housing includes a back-carrier plate for carrying said blower uniton the back of an operator.
 8. The portable blower arrangement of claim7, wherein said device can be attached to said back-carrier plate. 9.The portable blower arrangement of claim 8, wherein said back-carrierplate includes a handle to which said device can be attached.
 10. Theportable blower arrangement of claim 7, wherein said back-carrier plateincludes a base section formed thereon at an angle relative to saidback-carrier plate.
 11. The portable blower arrangement of claim 10,wherein said device is a moveable rack having a support section forsupporting said base section of said back-carrier plate.
 12. Theportable blower arrangement of claim 1, wherein said device has a handlesection for guiding said blower unit.
 13. The portable blowerarrangement of claim 12, wherein said device is a moveable rackcomprising a bent tube including two L-shaped struts having respectivelong legs having respective ends; and, a handle section connects saidends to each other.
 14. The portable blower arrangement of claim 13,wherein said moveable rack has at least one wheel.
 15. The portableblower arrangement of claim 14, wherein said L-shaped struts have endslying opposite said handle section; and, said moveable rack includes anaxle connecting the opposite-lying ends and at least one wheel mountedon said axle.